BDS department

Department of Oral Pathology & Microbiology

Diagnosing oral disease under the microscope — biopsy and cytology reporting, blood investigations and specialist care for oral precancer and cancer.

BDS admission Treatment for patients

What we teach and treat

Accurate diagnosis, from the cell up.

Oral pathology studies the changes in the cells and tissues of the mouth that cause, or are caused by, disease — the foundation of every accurate diagnosis. Started in 2007 with an undergraduate laboratory, the department has grown to include fully equipped histopathology and haematology laboratories, a clinical area, a slide reporting room, a slide discussion room and a museum. It teaches first-, second- and third-year BDS students, projecting microscope slides on screen for group discussion, and reports biopsies, cytology and blood investigations for patients referred from across the hospital.

Department motto

Pathology is humbling.
Every slide is read with care, because each diagnosis shapes a patient's treatment.

Equipment & facilities

Histopathology laboratory for tissue processing and staining
Haematology laboratory
Research microscope with polarising, phase-contrast, dark-field and fluorescence attachments
Automatic tissue processor
Microtomes, including a semi-automatic microtome, and a knife sharpener
Slide discussion room with a microscope image projection system (MIPS)
Tissue flotation, wax and water baths
Centrifuge, incubator and hot air oven
Autoclave and ultrasonic cleaner
Two dental chair units for selected out-patient cases